


Come and Take a Walk on the Wild Side

by combeferrer



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Cannibalism, Emotional Manipulation, Fluff, Hannibal is a psychology professor, M/M, beverly katz is sassy, the rating may go up later, the tags for this fandom are weird
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-06-17
Updated: 2013-06-21
Packaged: 2017-12-15 06:04:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/846164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/combeferrer/pseuds/combeferrer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Will Graham's main focuses in life are as follows:<br/>1. To get to know his hot psychology professor<br/>2. To keep his dumb best friend Beverly Katz in check<br/>3. To pass finals<br/>4. To call home to make sure his father is feeding his dogs the proper food<br/>5. To try and keep his nightmares, panic attacks, and other neuroses under wraps<br/>Everything else is unimportant.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The one where Beverly Katz can't keep her dumb mouth shut

**Author's Note:**

  * For [meronicavars (Godbriel)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Godbriel/gifts).



> this is for winter, who cheered me on the whole time ilu  
> ok, will is a college freshman and since hannibal is such a babe he'll probably take any class he gives.  
> if this is really inaccurate i apologize, im a high school junior oops

“Stop using goddamn metaphors and just tell it to me straight, babe, or I’m ready to dump my iced coffee all over your curls, I don’t care how cute they are,” Beverly Katz warned in a hushed tone as she glared at Will Graham, who was arguably her best friend.

Will rolled his eyes. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Don’t test me, puppy, don’t test me,” she warned, before taking a sip of her coffee.

“Look, I guess I just don’t know how to describe it? I guess I just trust him, which is pretty fucked up but I don’t know? It’s like I-”

“Don’t you dare fucking make a simile, I know you must have enjoyed high school English class, but you need to stop.”

“Do you want to hear what I have to say or not?” Will asked hostilely, his voice raised slightly, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair.

“Shh, be quiet, if the librarian comes over here she’ll kick us out because I have coffee.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have coffee then.”

“Do you really want to see me without caffeine?” Beverly asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Point taken.”

They sat in their university library, stacks of books on the table in front of them. Finals were coming up and they decided to study together, but Will regretted that decision more and more with each passing minute as it had become less of a study session and more of an interrogate-Will-about-his-psychology-professor session.

“Let’s make a game of this so we can study. You quiz me, and if I get a question right, you tell me one more detail? Okay? Good!”

Beverly didn’t give him a chance to answer, and instead dumped three heavy books onto his lap.

He rolled his eyes for what felt like the fifteenth time in an hour, but opened up a book without protest.

He flipped through the pages of the forensic science textbook until he found something suitable.

“Okay, we’ll start off with something easy. Where does the word ‘forensic’ come from?” Will asked.

Beverly laughed. “This is insultingly easy, donut.”

“Well, if it’s so easy then what’s the answer?” Will asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The word ‘forensic’ comes from the Latin word ‘forensis,’ meaning of ‘of or before the forum.’” Beverly recited with a grin. “Now, tell me a detail about you and Professor Lecter,” she said suggestively, her eyebrows waggling.

“Ah, ah, ah, that’s not enough for me to tell you anything. Why do they use that if it means ‘of or before the forum’?” Will asked.

“No fucking way, Graham, the rules were if I get something right, you tell me a detail. Don’t you dare test me,” Beverly said, pointing a finger threateningly at him.

“Fine, fine, fine. The first time I visited office hours with Professor Lecter resulted in him telling me to call him Hannibal when we’re not in class.”

“First name basis?”

“Only outside of class!” Will defended.

“Do you see him other than office hours?” Beverly asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Hey, that’s another detail and I’m not gonna tell you unless you get another answer right.” Will told her, crossing his arms.

“Alright, next question. Hurry it up, because I need to know.”

“How do you know you’ll get the question right?”

“Uh, because I’m practically a genius, now shoot,” Bev answered before taking a sip of her iced coffee.

By the end of the afternoon, Will found out that Beverly was far more prepared for her finals than he was for his.

Beverly found out: Will had indeed met with Hannibal outside of class (“we went to dinner once,”“no it wasn’t romantic, Beverly, stop making that face at me or I will walk out of this library”), that Will and Hannibal had not kissed (“Jesus, Beverly, of course not, that’s against the rules!”), that Will did indeed want to kiss Hannibal (“maybe, I don’t know, shut up, stop looking at me like that!”), that Will was definitely sexually attracted to Hannibal (“fucking Christ, Beverly, I am not answering that!””me blushing does not mean yes, stop acting like it does!”), and that Will would get up as if he was leaving, but he would never actually leave.

At the end of their study session, they gathered their books and shelved them. Will realized as he put away his share that he had hardly opened his own books and perhaps he should study alone tomorrow.

They walked out of the library quietly, mainly because Beverly wanted to draw as little attention as possible as she tried to hide the empty cup from her iced coffee. They managed to walk through the door without raising any suspicion from the librarian.

“So, same time, same game tomorrow?” Bev asked with a grin once they were outside.

“No way, I need to actually study tomorrow, not have you interrogate me about my relationship with Professor Lecter,” Will responded, leaning against the railing of the staircase.

“You mean your inappropriate relationship with him?”

“Shut up,” Will countered, blushing.

“Look, baby bird, as much as I want you to get laid, I don’t think your professor is a good place to get that from,” Beverly told him, concern clear in her voice.

“Jesus Christ, Bev, I’m not looking to get laid! And even if I was, I really don’t want to discuss that with you.”

“You sure that’s not what you want?” Beverly asked disbelievingly. “Besides, I’m your best friend! If you didn’t talk to me about your current non-existent or your potential sex life, then who would you talk to?” She exclaimed in a voice that was far too loud for Will’s comfort.

“Keep your voice down, Jesus,” Will ordered, looking around to make sure no one was listening. “Anyways, I don’t want to talk to anyone about my sex life, including you.”

“Will, I am very offended,” Beverly said, feigning hurt. “In fact, I’m so very offended that,” she paused and looked around, “that maybe I’ll do this.”

“Do wh-”

“Will Graham wants to sleep with Hannibal Lecter!” Beverly yelled to the world.

“Beverly, what the fuck!” Will exclaimed, horrified.

“Calm down, no one heard that,” Beverly said between laughs.

“Are you sure? I’m pretty sure the whole goddamn library heard that one.”

“Don’t worry about it, strawberry shortcake,” Beverly reassured him.

“Jesus Christ, Beverly, what if a professor or school official heard that,” Will worried.

“They didn’t, calm down! Loosen up!”

A horrified expression crossed Will’s face. “What if Hannibal heard that?”

“What if I heard what?” an accented voice asked behind them.

Will and Beverly spun around to see Hannibal Lecter himself behind them. They exchanged a look of surprise, Will’s eyes wide.

“What if I heard what?” Hannibal repeated.

“Beverly Katz, I am going to fucking end you. You have a head start of five seconds, so you better run now,” Will threatened.

“You’re joking, aren’t you?”

“Five, four,” Will began, his tone deadly serious.

“C’mon, Will!”

“Three, two,”

Beverly turned and ran as fast as she could.

Will and Hannibal watched her run.

“So, what is it that you didn’t want me to hear?” Hannibal asked with a small, amused smile.

“It’s nothing, it’s just some dumb thing Beverly said,” Will told him quickly, pushing his glasses up on his nose.

“If it was nothing you wouldn’t have answered so quickly,” Hannibal responded, quirking an eyebrow.

“It’s really, really nothing,” Will answered, blushing.

Hannibal raised his eyebrow further, and Will briefly wondered how that was physically possible. He also wondered how that managed to be attractive, but whatever.

“Look, she just said something stupid,”

Hannibal stepped closer. “I gathered that.”

Hannibal looked almost predatory, and it was making his knees weak.

“I, uh,” Will searched for an excuse, “I have to go to class!”

“It’s Saturday,” Hannibal pointed out with a half smile, stepping still closer.

“Fuck, I just...I have to...go somewhere that’s not here,” Will managed to stutter out.

Will turned and ran and Hannibal smiled as he watched him run off and almost crash into a tree.

-

“Beverly Katz, let me in right now!”

Will was at Beverly’s dorm, knocking violently on the door.

“Are you gonna hurt me?” She called, her voice muffled slightly by the closed door.

“No, just let me in!”

The door opened and he almost fell in her room.

“You’re lucky my roommate’s out, she wouldn’t appreciate the ruckus, princess.”

“Whatever, I just have to talk to you.”

“Take a seat, poppy.”

Will flopped onto her bed, his face falling onto her pillow, while Beverly neatly sat in her desk chair.

“You should have seen how he looked at me,” Will groaned into her pillow.

“What do you mean?”

Will flopped his arms wordlessly in response.

Bev raised her eyebrows. “I see,” she answered with pursed lips.

“Would it be too desperate if I gave him my phone number?” Will asked, rolling over and staring at the ceiling.

“That would definitely be breaking several rules and crossing some sort of line, but it wouldn’t be desperate seeing that he wants you hardcore,” Beverly responded honestly.

“Don’t say it like that,” Will scolded.

“He wants you. Hardcore. In a sexual way. He wants to have sex with you,” Beverly teased.

“Stop it!” Will whined, blushing.

“He wants to touch your dick. With his dick,” she continued gleefully.

“Bev!”

She leaned close to his face. “He wants to frickle frackle you,” she whispered seriously.

“Be serious, Bev!”

“Okay, fine, fine, fine. You can give him your number, but it’s probably in violation of some school rules and I recommend you don’t push this weird relationship even farther.”

“Thank you,” Will said, sighing in relief.

“What are you gonna do when you give him your number? Sext him?”  
Instead of glorifying her response with words, Will hit her in the head with her pillow.


	2. The one where Beverly Katz interrupts everything

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will manages to give Hannibal his number, and Beverly interrupts things (shocker)  
> (also, Alana comes in next chapter!)

All of Professor Lecter's class was spent with Will trying not to look at Hannibal so that he could focus on his note taking, but it was completely impossible. Even if he looked up for a second, his eyes would immediately drift towards Hannibal, only to see that Hannibal was already staring at him. He would give a small smile whenever Will looked at him and Will's face would flush pink as he looked away quickly. The girl behind him must have thought he was completely insane.

After class was dismissed the students shuffled out and Will remained.

"Hey, Professor?"

"We are not in class anymore, Will," Hannibal said, looking up from his books with a smile.

"Right, sorry, Hannibal," Will said with a sheepishly apologetic smile.

"What is it, Will?"

"I just, uh, wanna apologize for running away the other day," Will muttered, looking uncomfortable at his shoes.

"It's nothing at all, Will," Hannibal replied with a smile.

"Okay, I just felt bad, it was all incredibly stupid, really," Will rubbed the back of his neck.

"What is it that Ms. Katz said that upset you so much?" Hannibal asked, raising his eyebrows.

Will blushed. "She, er, implied something about, uh, me and," he swallowed nervously, "and uh, you."

"What did Ms. Katz imply?"

"She implied something about our relationship..." Will answered awkwardly.

"I see," Hannibal responded. It looked as if he wanted to press further, but he decided against it.

Silence fell between them, and the only sound was the quiet shuffling of Hannibal's papers.

Will desperately wanted to break the silence, and he wanted to try to steer the conversation towards giving Hannibal his phone number, but he wasn't sure how to. He debated several ways in his head, ranging from a more logical approach ("Since break is coming up, I should give you my number so you can tell me helpful books to read for next semester!") to one that would be completely embarrassing ("Do you want my phone number? Maybe I can text you some night? Pictures of me, I mean...").

He knew he had to say something and the words "do you want my number?" tumbled from out of his mouth before he could stop himself. He heard the words after he had said them and his face flushed pink as his mistake played over and over and over again in his head.

"Sorry, that was dumb, I can le-"

"Yes, I do," Hannibal answered with a smile.

Will's heart almost stopped beating in complete surprise. A grin broke out across his face before he could stop it.

"Alright, I'll write it down for you," Will told him. He pulled a piece of paper from his bag and a pen and scribbled his number down in a messy scrawl.

"Here you go," he said, passing the paper over.

“Thank you, Will. I’ll be sure to contact you soon,” Hannibal said, stepping closer to Will.

Will looked up at Hannibal, and he was so, so close. Unconsciously, he stepped forward too. He felt his body pull upwards, almost against his will. His face was inches from Hannibal’s, and it was moving closer, and just a few more-

“Ahem.”

Will jumped away at the sound of a throat clearing behind them, his face turning red.

“Did I interrupt anything?” Beverly asked, grinning wider than Will had ever seen her.

“No, you did not, Ms. Katz,” Hannibal answered, looking at her over Will.

“Good, good. I was just here to grab Will so we could go to lunch and then study,” she replied smoothly.

“No way, I’m not studying with you again,” Will protested.

He noticed with some disappointment that Hannibal was no longer in his personal space, and he shot a glare at Beverly, who merely grinned in response.

“Well, I guess I’ll let you go, Will. Sorry for keeping you late,” Hannibal told him, before elegantly sweeping out of the lecture hall.

“You piece of shit,” Will scolded Beverly as soon as Hannibal left.

“Me? What ever did I do?” Beverly asked, feigning innocence.

“You know exactly what you did,” Will replied, pointing an accusatory finger at her.

“Yes, I stopped you from breaking the school rules and kissing your professor,” Beverly replied, rolling her eyes.

“I didn’t want you to stop it!”

“Christ, doll, can’t you keep in your pants at least until you’re not in a lecture hall?” Beverly asked, exasperated.

“Jesus, it’s not like I had him pinned against the wall or anything, it would’ve been just a kiss!” Will defended himself. A soft pink blush spread across his face as he pictured that happening.

“Let’s be real, twinky, if anyone was pinning anyone, he’d be pinning you,” Beverly replied.

“How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?” Will asked, his blush deepening.

“I’m never gonna stop, Will. It’s who you are in your soul,” Beverly replied dramatically.

“Shut up!” Will exclaimed.

“Will, you are truly and completely a sub. A bottom,” Beverly continued, stepping closer.

“Stop!”

“You’re a twink, Will. A twink through and through!” Beverly stage-whispered dramatically in his face.

“Beverly!” Will whined.

“Alright, calm down,” she replied, laughing.

“Can we just eat lunch?” Will asked grumpily.

“Sure thing, cutie pie.”

-

Will laid in his bed staring at the ceiling after studying with Beverly again. He tried to distract himself from the fact that Hannibal had had his number for four hours, thirty-two minutes, and six seconds and had not texted him or called him.

He thought about how he was probably projecting his feelings onto Hannibal in his search for stability, about how Hannibal probably wasn’t even into him, and about how Hannibal and he had almost kissed and it was probably one of the best moments of his life.

He switched rapidly from believing Hannibal liked him too or from believing that Hannibal thought he was really annoying and just another dumb kid that he had to teach.

Suddenly, his phone vibrated, stirring him from his thoughts.

Will fumbled for his phone, and in his excitement, knocked it to the ground. He got out of bed immediately and picked it up, opening the text immediately.

“Hello, Will, it’s Hannibal,” the text read.

Will smiled involuntarily to himself.

He debated a reply, trying not to sound too desperate. He wasn’t sure whether or not to use capitalization or punctuation, abbreviations, etc.

Plus, he had no idea how to answer.

He could go for a casual ”Yo,” (no, that sounds ridiculous!) or a more formal “Why, hello, Hannibal,” (somehow that manages to sound even worse than “yo,” how is that possible?). He didn’t know whether or not to continue the conversation in one text (“Hey, how are you?”) or whether to leave it off with a simple greeting (“Hey”).

After debating for several minutes, he tapped out “Hey, Hannibal, how are you?” and pressed the send button before he could second guess himself even more.

The phone vibrated rather quickly, and Will realized that his psychology professor, who was probably 40, was a better texter than he was.

The text read “I’m well, how are you?”

Will could hardly believe he was having such a normal conversation with his psychology professor, of all people.

He smiled to himself as he responded “I’m pretty good too. What are you up to?”

“Nothing as of right now. Are you busy later?” Hannibal responded.

Will’s heart sped up and he reread Hannibal’s question probably fifty times, before responding “No, I’m free.”

“Good, would you like to meet me for dinner at the cafe down the street? We can discuss your paper, which I found fascinating.” Hannibal replied.

“Sounds good, what time?” Will texted back coolly, hoping to seem as though he wasn’t ridiculously excited.

“Seven?”

“Sounds good, see you then!” Will typed the exclamation point and pressed send before he could change his mind.

“See you then, Will.”

He flopped backwards onto his bed, and since he didn’t know what else to do, he called Beverly.

“Hey, what’s up, pup?” Beverly asked once she answered the phone.

“I need your help, come to my dorm right away,” Will answered quickly.

“What if I said no because I’m on a date with my girlfriend?” Beverly asked.

“You don’t have a girlfriend, now ge-”

“I could definitely have a girlfriend!” Beverly interrupted.

Will sighed heavily. “Well, do you?”

“No, but I could.”

“Yes, I know, everyone loves the all-powerful Bev Katz,” Will responded sarcastically. “Now get over here, I think I kinda have a date with Hannibal?”

“Why didn’t you say that first? I’ll be over in a heartbeat!” Beverly said, and before Will could answer, she hung up the phone.

“How do I put up with her?” Will groaned to himself.

-

“Will Graham, let me in immediately!” Beverly shouted once she was at the door of his dorm, knocking as she shouted.

Will was happy at moments like these that a parent’s signature, therapist’s signature, and a doctor’s signature had gotten him his own dorm room. In fact, if it weren’t for the nightmares, panic attacks, and sheer need for his own space to feel comfortable, having Beverly Katz as his best friend felt like enough of an excuse to have a room to himself.

“Calm down!” Will yelled as he walked to the door.

Once he opened it, she rushed in like a tornado.

“Okay, tell me everything, right now,” Beverly commanded him.

“I don’t have time, I’m meeting him at seven!”

“Seven?” She all but screamed. “That’s only an hour, Jesus!”

“Yeah, so only ask what you need to,” Will instructed.

“Oh, hell no, this time will be spent making you look better. I can ask questions later.”

“I look fine!” Will protested.

“You look like a seventy year old man, you’re wearing something else.”

-

Within the space of half an hour, Beverly had searched through Will’s entire wardrobe until she found something she deemed suitable. She had shoved a nicer pair of jeans and a t-shirt he had never worn at him and instructed him to change into them.

He complied without much complaint, and begrudgingly agreed that he did look better now. However, he grabbed a cardigan, as he was unused to his arms feeling sunlight.

“Okay, now instead of you looking like a seventy year old man, you look like a hipster, which is a little better, I guess,” Beverly told him as she scanned his outfit.

“I do not look like a hipster!” Will protested.

“Shut up, hipster, it’s time for your date,” Beverly told him, ignoring his comment.

“Alright, fine, I’ll head out now,” Will said.

“Okay, I’ll be here when you get back so you can tell me everything about your date,” Beverly told him.

“Okay, okay, see you in a bit,” Will replied as he walked to the door and opened it.

“Okay, have fun and use protection!” Beverly called to him.  
He slammed the door in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter three shouldn't take long because i've already started it...i'm on summer vacation, this should update fairly quickly.


	3. The one where Will Graham succeeds at everything

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Will and Hannibal's big date, but a few bumps in the form of Will's former psych professor, Alana Bloom, and a writer for the school paper, Freddie Lounds, pop up.

Will arrived at the cafe embarrassingly early he realized when he glanced at his watch and it read 6:45. He sighed and sat down at a table, waiting for Hannibal to arrive. He tapped his fingers on the table and thought about what could happen on the date. It could go well (they would kiss and Hannibal would walk Will back to his dorm) or it could go horribly (he could fuck everything up). Even worse, Hannibal may not consider it a date. A horrified expression fell onto Will's face as he thought over that option.

"Will?"

A voice broke him away from his thoughts. He turned towards the source to see who it was.

"Hi, Professor Bloom," Will greeted awkwardly. Alana Bloom was his psychology professor last semester. He had developed an uncomfortable crush on her, and when she figured this out, she recommended that he not take her class the next semester.

"How are you? How are you liking your psychology course this semester?" She asked with a smile.

"Oh, it's good. Professor Lecter is a good teacher," Will answered uncomfortably.

"I'm glad you like him, he's talked a lot about you," she said.

Will flushed. Hannibal talked about him. A lot.

"Don't worry, he only says good things," Alana continued.

Will flushed further.

"So, what are you doing here all alone?" Alana asked, sounding concerned.

"Actually, I'm, uh, meeting someone," Will answered, looking up at her briefly.

She smiled, looking genuinely happy. "Oh, okay! I'll leave you alone, then. I hope you and her have a nice time!"

Will debated whether or not to correct her pronoun, but decided against it. "Thank you, professor."

Alana walked back to her table, grabbed her purse and walked out the door, but not before running straight into Hannibal, who walked into the cafe with a mysterious cooler.

Will felt like running and hiding.

"Oh, sorry, Hannibal!" Alana apologized.

"No, I'm sorry, Alana," Hannibal responded politely.

They chatted for a moment, and Will desperately wanted to know what they were saying, but he sat and drummed his fingers against the table instead.

“Hello,” Will heard, interrupting him from his drumming.

He looked up and smiled at Hannibal. “Hey.”

“How are you?” Hannibal asked politely as he sat down.

“I’m fine, how are you?”

“I’m well. Professor Bloom talked briefly about you to me,” Hannibal said.

“She didn’t know you were meeting me, did she?” Will asked quickly.

“No, she did not,” Hannibal told him.

“Oh, okay. She was my psych professor last semester,” Will added.

“I am well aware,” Hannibal responded.

“I kinda had a crush on her, and she figured that out...” Will continued.

“I am aware of that as well,” Hannibal

“Yeah,” Will responded awkwardly, unsure of what else to say.

“Do you still like her now?” Hannibal asked him, an eyebrow raised.

Will’s face flushed. “No, I kinda like someone else now? He’s a bit older than me, but I think we can make it work.”

“I see,” Hannibal replied with a small smile.

All Will could focus on was that he sort of just flirted successfully for the first time in his life, and he didn’t even have alcohol in his system. Maybe it was crazy to have a small version of Beverly walking around in his mind, but he totally high-fived her right then.

“Why don’t we just pick up something for dessert here, and then have a picnic in the park? I’m a bit particular with what I eat and I prefer to prepare most of it, so I brought dinner,” Hannibal suggested, pulling the mysterious cooler he walked in with off the ground.

“That sounds fine,” Will answered with a smile.

Hannibal walked to the counter to order dessert to go for the both of them and Will watched him, trying very hard not to notice that Hannibal’s pants were perfectly tailored and his ass was-

Will’s thoughts were interrupted as Hannibal turned his head to look back at Will and Will quickly turned his head away in an embarrassingly conspicuous way to try and cover up his blatant staring, but he heard Hannibal laugh softly to himself, so he knew he was caught.

Will averted his eyes permanently to the table so that he would not be caught staring at Hannibal’s butt again, focusing his attention instead on what he could hear of Hannibal ordering at the counter, and the sound of his expensive leather shoes walking back towards him.

“Ready to go?” Hannibal asked.

Will looked up at him and nodded with a smile.

Will got up from the booth and walked with Hannibal out of the restaurant. If he was walking a bit closer to Hannibal than necessary, well that was his business. It took most of his strength and the Beverly in his mind shouting at him not to grab Hannibal’s hand, seeing that any student or teacher could see them.

They arrived at the park after walking in comfortable silence. Will took in the soft, verdant lawn and the light of the late afternoon sun with a smile.

Hannibal wordlessly took a blanket out from a compartment on the side of the cooler and laid it out, motioning for Will to sit. Will complied and sat on the soft, dark blanket and Hannibal sat closer than necessary to him.

Will watched in awe as Hannibal began pulling container after container out of the cooler.

“What’s all this?” Will asked, gesturing at the containers.

“I have brought for us tonight a gazpacho, made with tomatoes I grew myself in my garden. It is topped with fresh cucumbers, also from my garden. Along with the gazpacho, I brought...”

Will tuned out, instead looking at the food and just listening to the sound of Hannibal’s voice without taking in what he was saying.

“Will?”

Will realized that he had tuned out too long and Hannibal had stopped talking. His face flushed pink.

“Sorry about that, I don’t really know much about food other than I like eating it,” Will answered with a smile at his own joke.

Hannibal smiled back.

“Well, we’ll start with the gazpacho,” Hannibal said, passing Will a bowl and a spoon.

Will stared warily at it, before taking a bite.

“This is incredible,” he said through a mouthful. The taste of fresh tomato exploded on his palate, becoming the most crisp and refreshing thing he had ever eaten.

“My secret is that I add beef broth while cooking, while most make gazpacho completely vegetarian,” Hannibal divulged.

“Well, it’s delicious,” Will told him, before eating another spoonful of soup.

“So, how are your classes going?” Hannibal asked Will, before elegantly spooning gazpacho into his mouth. Will realized that Hannibal made mundane tasks seem impossibly elegant.

“They’re all going pretty well, I think. Finals are coming up, which is pretty nerve-wracking? But I think I’ll be pretty well prepared,” Will answered.

“Good. If you need any help preparing for my final, you can always come for extra help,” Hannibal suggested.

Will realized immediately that Hannibal was flirting with him. He was leaning forward slightly, and he had even scooted closer to Will on the blanket while Will was talking.

“Can I? I might need it, maybe I’ll come for help everyday,” Will flirted back.

The Beverly in his head was very impressed by how successful he was at flirting tonight.

“That would be fine,” Hannibal’s face was very close to his own and if he just leaned forward then-

“Hello! Are you not Professor Lecter?”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Will muttered. He almost expected the girl to be Beverly, interrupting him again, even though the voice sounded nothing like hers.

“I am,” Hannibal answered.

“Hi, I’m Freddie Lounds, reporter for the school newspaper,” Freddie stuck out a pale hand for Hannibal to shake, which he did, albeit uncomfortably.

“Hello, Ms. Lounds,” Hannibal responded.

“Who is this?” She asked, gesturing at Will.

“I’m Will Graham,” Will answered. He realized already that he did not like this girl at all. She felt chaotic and entirely consumed by ambition, which were not things admired by Will.

“Okay, thank you, that’s all I need!” She said, before running off as quickly as she came.

“What was that all about?” Will asked.

“Perhaps we should move somewhere indoors,” Hannibal suggested. “We do not want prying eyes to be staring at us.”

“Yeah, definitely,” Will agreed.

They packed up their picnic and walked back through the park.

“Where are we going?” Will asked.

“We can go to my office,” Hannibal suggested.

“That’s fine,” Will replied with a smile.

The walk to Hannibal’s office was quiet, but Will could sense an uneasiness in Hannibal, which forced him to feel uneasy as well. Will realized how often he mirrored Hannibal’s emotions, even more than he mirrored the emotions of others. He reasoned that he did this because he trusted Hannibal more than he trusted almost everyone else he knew.

“So, what do you think Freddie wanted with our names?” Will asked.

“I think she may write an article that includes us in it, and it will not be good for either of us,” Hannibal responded.

“Oh, I see,” Will answered, suddenly nervous. The reality of their relationship dawned on him. He could be expelled, Hannibal could get fired, it would just end awfully.

“But we can think about this another time, yes?” Hannibal asked. They had arrived at his office and he unlocked the door and let them in.

“Yeah, definitely,” Will agreed, following Hannibal into his office.

Every time Will went into Hannibal’s office, he was surprised by the elegance. The offices of every single one of his other professors were boring and undecorated, staying entirely generic. However, Hannibal had decorated his with red-striped curtains, a mahogany desk, and a Persian rug.

Will plopped himself down on the black leather couch across from Hannibal’s desk, and Hannibal sat in a chair next to the couch.

“I apologize, this isn’t the ideal setting for a date,” Hannibal told Will as he began unpacking the cooler again. He passed Will a plate of something that looked extraordinarily delicious and fancy.

Will’s heart skipped a beat at the word “date.”

“Oh, it’s a date?” Will asked with a raised eyebrow, before taking a bite of the food. It was incredible, whatever it was. He mentally chastised himself for not listening when Hannibal meticulously described the food that he had made.

“Yes, at least, I consider it one,” Hannibal answered seriously.

“Well, uh, good. Because, I do too,” Will told him.

“Good,” Hannibal responded with a smile.

Will looked down at the food in his lap and looked back up, only to see that Hannibal was right in front of him.

He looked up at Hannibal, who was rapidly nearing his face and Will felt as if the past few weeks was building up to this moment. He thanked whatever being may be looking out for him that Beverly wasn’t there and no one was there to interrupt.

Hannibal kissed him carefully, as if he was giving Will the chance to pull away in case he was uncomfortable, but Will was extremely comfortable. Hannibal’s lips were warm and soft and moving against his and all he could focus on was that it was finally happening. Will’s arms instinctually wrapped around Hannibal’s neck, pulling him down so that they were level, and Hannibal’s hands cupped Will’s face. Will felt Hannibal’s hands move to his hair and wrapping in his curls and tugging gently. Will groaned softly, and he realized that apparently hairpulling was a thing for him.

Hannibal pulled away first. “Time for dessert?” He asked casually, as if he and Will were not just kissing. He didn’t even have the good grace to look flustered.

“I haven't finished my dinner, you kinda interrupted me," Will said, looking at his half-eaten food that Hannibal had put to the side at some point during their kiss. Will wondered briefly when that happened, but he let it go.

Hannibal took Will's fork, took a bit of whatever the meat was, and fed it to Will. Will flushed pink from being fed. It felt oddly sensual, even though he normally thought it was kinda weird.

"Dessert now?" Hannibal asked.

"Sure thing," Will answered.

Hannibal got up from the ground in front of Will and swept to his desk to go the bag from the cafe. He pulled out a chocolate torte, that Will thought looked amazing.

Hannibal cut them both slices and Will took one more bite of his dinner for good measure, seeing that it was probably the best thing he had ever eaten. Growing up, his dad wasn't much of a cook, so he hadn't really eaten good food very often. When he did, it was over at friends houses or at restaurants on special occasions. However, nothing compared to Hannibal's food.

"What kind of meat was this?" Will asked, pointing at his plate.

"Rabbit. I get all of my meat from a special butcher that I trust," Hannibal answers as he turned around with two plates of dessert.

"Huh, sounds fancy," Will said.

Hannibal chuckled lightly in response.

Will smiled back at him.

"Now, here is dessert," Hannibal said, presenting Will with a plate. 

"Thanks," Will answered, taking it from Hannibal. 

Will took a bite and realized that he should probably go to that cafe more often.

They are quietly, with only the sound of chewing between them.

"Why don't I put on music?" Hannibal suggested.

Will nodded in response, before taking another bite of the torte.

Hannibal got up from the couch and moved to his shelf where he had a record player and a couple of records.

"I prefer the sound of vinyl over digital music," Hannibal explained.

Classical music started playing, and Will remembered the piece from years of piano lessons that one of Will's first therapists suggested. Will got rid of the therapist but kept the lessons.

Will remembered the name of the piece easily. “Is this from Don Giovanni? By Mozart?”

"I didn't take you for a fan of classical music," Hannibal replied, impressed.

“I like some. I remember a lot from taking piano lessons when I was a kid. In fact, I took lessons until like, two years ago,” Will told him.

“Impressive,” Hannibal replied with a raised eyebrow.

They ate their dessert quietly, listening as one classical piece changed to the next, becoming lost in the music.

“You’re not like other teachers, Hannibal,” Will said out of nowhere.

“Why would you say that?” Hannibal asked.

“I don’t know, you’re just...different,” Will answered, unsure of how to describe what he meant.

“Is this a good different?” Hannibal asked him, raising an eyebrow.

Will thought for a moment. He thought of the moments in Hannibal’s office where Hannibal would play classical music, about when Hannibal told Will to call him Hannibal, about the first time Will went to Hannibal’s office hours and ended up telling Hannibal everything that he had been holding in for his whole life.

“Yes,” Will answered, entirely sure of himself.

“Good,” Hannibal replied, smiling.

“I had a nice time,” Will said, feeling that the date had come to its natural end.

“I did too, Will,” Hannibal replied.

“Will you, uh, walk me back to my dorm?” Will asked shyly, looking down at his lap.

“Yes,” Hannibal answered with a smile.

They stood up from the couch and walked out of the office and through the halls of the building, definitely closer than necessary. Will felt entirely safe around Hannibal, which was a feeling that was mostly unfamiliar to him. Around Hannibal, he felt like he wasn’t drowning in the ocean that was his consciousness, but floating atop it.

The weather outside was warm, smelling of the oncoming summer, and the crickets had just come out. The breeze was soft and gentle, blowing through Will’s curls, and the sun was setting.

Will decided that this was probably the best night of his life.

Will’s building was approaching, and Will wasn’t sure if he should invite Hannibal up to his room. He remembered that Beverly would be waiting there, but they could easily kick her out. Besides, that kiss with Hannibal was way better than any other kiss he’d had, seeing that for most of his other kisses he had to get drunk before he could even talk to the girls or boys. Will debated with himself if maybe this was too forward, seeing that it was their first date. Plus, the dorm wasn’t really a safe place for them to do much more than kissing. Anyone could see Hannibal there, which would not look good at all.

“This is your dorm, yes?” Hannibal asked, interrupting Will from his thoughts.

“Uh, yeah. So, I guess this is goodnight?” Will asked.

“Yes, I suppose it is,” Hannibal responded.

Will grabbed Hannibal’s shoulders gently and kissed him quickly, hoping that no one would see.

“I had a fun time,” Will said shyly.

“I did as well,” Hannibal said with a smile.

“You should call me. Tonight, maybe? Or some other time, I don’t know, or tex-”

Hannibal chuckled, cutting Will off. “I’ll call you. By the way, I like your new outfit, it...fits you nicely.”

Will flushed. “Uh, thanks.”

“Goodnight, Will.”

“Goodnight, Hannibal.”

Will ran up the stairs and into his room to find Beverly sitting in a chair with pizza and a magazine.

“So, tell me everything,” she commanded with a grin.

Will flopped on his bed and described the entire night in great detail, smiling stupidly to himself the entire time.

“You’re head over heels, kid,” Beverly said, before sipping her soda.

“Shh,” Will said, rolling over on his bed and shoving his face in his pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> everything is people


End file.
